She Walked With Dragons
by Stunned Monkey
Summary: Tori and Jade build an unlikely friendship over years of growing up. Although they do not share the same status in society it doesn't matter to them. They see past the differences and base their friendship on things they share. A battle is coming to their land and one would become a victim and one the savior. AU. Mythical land, castle, dragons, swords, princess, king, friends,
1. Chapter 1: All Your Eggs In One Basket

**She Walked with Dragons**

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter1: All Your Eggs in One Basket

It was a beautiful day and the young Tori lay on her back in the hay wagon trying to find animal shapes in the clouds. This small ten year old girl has seen a lot of hardship already in her life, but she still manages to smile and always find simple joys in life.

Tori was a slight girl for her age and had long dark hair that when loose was lots long enough for her to sit on it. She also had eyes as dark as the heavy winter beer that was brewed from all the dregs in the bottom of the kegs. When her father looked in her eyes she swore that he could see forever. It was her smile that was the light of his life. No matter how hard times were her smile could light up the room and make you forget about your troubles for a time. She also had the voice of an angel.

She was a happy child and was very creative. She did not have any brothers. She had one older sister, Katrina who never liked to work and didn't like to get dirty. The two girls did not get along well so they chose to spend most of their time apart. For a child who grew up without any friends she was still a very pleasant little girl. She was kind, honest and well mannered. Everyone told her parents that she was a blessing.

Her father came to the village to sell the hay that she was lying on and she would sold the eggs that were in the basket next to her. This has been her responsibility for the last year. Going to the village was always exciting. She experienced so many new and wonderful things in the village. Sometimes she would stare up at the castle on the hill that over-looked the village and dreamed that one day she would be fortunate enough to see inside the ivy covered stone walled buildings. Her mother was always giving her heck for being a dreamer.

Her mother wasn't trying to be mean, she just didn't want to see her daughter have all these fanciful dreams that would never had a chance of coming true. They were nothing but poor peasants and always would be. Victoria would not grow up and marry a prince or a knight. She would grow up and be the same thing that her mother was. The wife of a peasant. She would take in laundry and mending and sell eggs, milk and butter. There would never be meat for the table and real clothes for her many children's backs.

When Victoria was four she told her mother that if one followed their dreams they could be anyone they wanted to be, it hurt her mother dearly. She wanted to tell her daughter to hang on to those dreams and stay that innocent, but she could not. Instead she told her that dreaming never fed a family and it never paid the landowner. Any other child would have had their dreams shattered and cried their eyes out at the loss, but not Victoria. She said to her mother, "You just can't see it mommy, but I am different. One day I will show the world that I can do something that no one else has ever been able to do." It was her mother Holly who cried herself to sleep that night for being so hard on her baby girl.

She sold a few eggs, but the market was slow that morning. Then she saw the brown and white puppy run around the corner of one of the vegetable stands. Tori loved all animals especially young ones. Thinking that the puppy must be lost Tori left her small stand and chased after the little dog. That is where she ran into Jade.

Jade, or Princess Jadelyn as she was known to the world, loved to come to the market to see new things too. She did not get a lot of time away from Mrs. Fuller her nanny. Fuller was a fat old lady that often couldn't keep up with Jade so Jade found that if she kept moving sooner or later Fuller would sit down somewhere and then Jade would have all the freedom she wanted.

That morning she found a puppy that was for sale at one of the booths. She walked up and held the puppy and it licked her face. She wanted the puppy, but of course she had no money to pay the man. He told her it would be his honour to give her the puppy. She told him that she would tell her father and he would be very grateful to him for giving her this wonderful gift. The man bowed respectfully as she carried the puppy away.

Jade and Tori were both chasing the pup and neither saw the other resulting in the collision that knocked both of them on the ground. Tori looked at this other person and saw that she was wearing a very nice long dress and was now holding the puppy. "I am sorry I didn't mean to run into you." Tori said. Now feeling somewhat self-conscious about the rags that she wore.

"No I wasn't paying attention. I was trying to catch my new puppy. His name is Samson. But I call him Sammy." Jade said.

"My name is Tori. It is a very nice puppy."

"My name is Jade. He is so cute." She hugged him until he squeaked.

"I am here with my dad. We sell hay and eggs." Tori said.

"I live up there on the hill. I like to come here and look around." Jade said while the dog licked her.

"Do you live near the castle?" Tori asked.

"Yes I actually live in the castle." Jade said rather matter of factly.

"I wish I lived in the castle that would be such an adventure." Tori said with stars in her eyes.

"It is not that big of a deal. It is old and dark and smells funny. Do you want to play with my puppy and I?" Jade asked

"I have to get back to my eggs. I left them at the stand." Tori said suddenly feeling terrible about not doing her job. Her father would be so let down if something happened to the eggs. This was how their family made their money. If they didn't sell the eggs they would not have money for food this week.

Tori ran to the stall only to find that the basket with the eggs was gone and so were the coins that were hidden in the bottom of the basket. What would she do now? She just sat down and cried. Jade couldn't let her new friend cry like this. "Why don't I help you look around and try to find who has your eggs?" She helped Tori dry her tears and the two set off through the market.

There were a lot more people in the market now so it was very crowded and it was growing very busy. Tori was so afraid her father would see her. They were about to give up when Tori saw a large dirty man carrying a basket that looked just like the one she had her eggs in. Tori crept up through the sea of people and peaked under the cloth that he had put over the eggs to hide them. This was the basket, they had found him! Now what?

Jade said that they could go and get a palace guard, but Tori said her father would find out and she would be in big trouble. They decided that they would steal the eggs back. Tori didn't like the idea of stealing, but Jade convinced her that they were her eggs to start with so this wasn't really stealing. They were just get them back from the thief.

They started picking out the eggs one at a time from the basket. They were putting them in the apron Tori wore over her dress. She held it like a sail on a ship and they carefully put the eggs in the apron.

All was going well until the man realized that the basket was getting lighter. He turned and saw the girls and shouted, "THIEF! The girls ran as fast as they could to the stall where they had left Sammy tied. Tori had to be careful that she did not break any of the eggs. The man was hot on their heels as were two palace guards. They all seemed to arrive at the stall at the same time.

The man grabbed Jade by the wrist and pulled back his other arm to strike her with the back of his hand.

"Halt! What is going on here?" One of the guards shouted.

"These girls stole my eggs and I am going to teach them a lesson." The man said turning to the soldier.

The soldier looked to the girls the dirty peasant girl he did not know but he certainly recognized Princess Jade.

"This man is lying. He stole my friend's eggs and money in that basket. We were just trying to get them back without causing a scene." Jade spit her words like venom at the man. Tori was seeing for the first time this side of Jade. It was confident and strong and if Jade had the size Tori was sure that Jade would have handled this man herself.

The soldier nodded to Jade and bowed ever so slightly. He then grabbed the man while his partner took the basket and handed it to Tori.

"Unhand me! I have a right to teach these little thieves a lesson."

"So help me if you lay another hand on that girl I shall kill you where you stand and take great joy in doing so!" The soldier said to the man. "You are under arrest for theft and common assault. The only place you will see for the next year is the dungeon. "M'ladies!"" They soldiers gave a slight bow and then took the man struggling through the crowd.

"Wow that was some luck that those guards believed you Jade. I don't know what I would have done if they had arrested us. Are you alright? He was going to strike you. I wonder why he stopped." Tori said puzzled.

"Well as I told you my father works in the castle and is well liked. Those men must know him." Jade said with a bit of a twinkle in her eye, knowing full well why the guards had taken their side and removed the man. There was no way she wanted her new friend to know who she was. It always ruined things. She once tried to make friends with a servant girl, but they could never get past the status issue. In the end it did not work.

The girls took turns looking after Sammy and selling the eggs. For some reason Jade seemed to get more money per egg, but that didn't bother Tori. She was happy for the time to play with the puppy. When all the eggs were sold there was a tidy profit in the bottom of the basket. Jade told Tori that she must be leaving and that she had enjoyed the day ever so much. She would be back next Saturday to see Tori and they would wonderful adventures together.

When Tori's father arrived from selling the hay, he was happy to see that she had sold all the eggs and very surprised at the price she seemed to get. Tori told him all about the new friend she had made. She prattled on and on about all the great qualities that her new friend Jade had. David had learned long ago when Tori got onto one of her stories it was just easier to let her go and he also learned to tune most of what she said out. That is why he never made a connection at all between Jade and Princess Jadelyn. Even if he had made the connection he would have thought she was not telling the truth.

Tori would go home to her humble cottage to work in the fields and the chicken coup. The entire time she would be thinking about Jade and all the adventures that they could have. There was something special about this girl, Tori couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something different about her. The greatest thing was she was Tori's new friend.

**AN: I hope you like this little story. It is going to be a little lighter fare than my previous stories, but there will still be friendship, pain, deceit, some violence and wonder. Please, please, please leave me some feedback so I know what you are thinking. Even if it is to tell me that you hate my stuff and wish I would quit polluting this site. SM.**


	2. Chapter 2: Keep It to Yourself

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 2: Keep It to Yourself

The two girls found time to play together. Tori would walk the two miles to the village whenever her work was finished. She loved the fact that Jade never seemed to have any chores to do, so she had all kinds of time to play. Tori discovered that if she wanted to play with Jade all she had to do was go to the castle gate and ask a palace guard and they would send someone to find her.

Tori thought that Jade's father must be well liked in the palace, because everyone seemed to know Jade and had no problem doing whatever she wanted. If Jade wanted to go somewhere she just did. She didn't seem to have to ask anyone for permission. If she wanted something someone seemed to show up with it and she had it.

One day the girls had planned to go explore the surrounding area behind the castle. When Jade showed up at the front gate she was wearing a wool tunic and leather leggings and boots. She had a leather belt with a brass spyglass hanging from it. It wasn't a sword, but it was still something that Tori had never seen.

Tori stopped and knelt down to pet Sammy. She was rubbing his ears and petting him. Then she turned to Jade and asked, "Why doesn't he get to sleep on your bed anymore?"

"What? How did you know he doesn't get to sleep on my bed?" Jade was very confused.

"Sammy told me. He said you used to let him sleep with you, but the last two nights he had to sleep alone in another room. He is very sad at night now and is confused as to what he did wrong." Tori said with a very concerned face.

"Well Fuller said I would get fleas from him if I let him sleep with me. So she made him sleep in the great room." Jade said.

"He doesn't like Fuller. She hit him a couple of days ago for nothing at all and he had to growl at her." Tori said.

"She said he growled for no reason. That witch hit him. I should hit her the old cow." Jade said. "We should get going."

They ran through the meadows heading up to the hills that stretched out to the horizon. The hills were as green as emeralds and the sky was clear. It was a great day for exploring and using your imagination.

Sammy joined them chasing through the tall grass and trying to catch grasshoppers and ground hogs. He was having as much fun as they were having. When he found a stream he tried to catch a fish. Sammy wasn't much of a fish dog. He did have a lot of fun though.

The hillsides were studded with very old rounded rectangular stones about the size of a loaf of bread. Once they got to the top of one of the hills they found a series of low walls made from the same stones. Some of the stones were broken like they had been hit with something very hard.

This captured Tori's imagination right away. "Do you know what this place was?"

"I have heard my father and others talk about it. This was built in the time of his great great grandfather. It was called Windborne Keep. It was the first castle here in Windborne. I was told there was a great battle and it was destroyed but the invaders were defeated. That was when they decided to build Windborne Castle down by the river and this one was forgotten." Jade told the story as she had memorized it from hearing it time and time again.

Tori ran to highest wall, which was about three feet tall. She crouched down and called out, "Jade I see the invaders coming. Bring your spyglass and see them."

Jade played along with the game and ran to the wall pretending that it was very important that she not be seen. She took out her spyglass and peeped over the edge of the old wall. Even though Jade could not see anything of course, but she played the game anyway. "I can see over one hundred Turds riding heavy horses all in armor!"

"Turds?" Toir questioned.

"Yes that is the ancient enemy that sacked this keep. At least that is the story that my grandfather told me." Jade stated. It was not really the Turds, but the Turrids. The Turrids had been the enemy of Windborne for generations. They were indeed the ones who sacked the keep two hundred years ago, but at a great loss that made them weak for over a century.

"If you say so. I will load the catapult to defend. You should ready the archers." Tori said gathering stones together and started heaving them over the low wall. In her mind she was squashing knights and horses as they rode forward. Jade took a handkerchief from her pocket and raised it high above her head and then in one swift movement she brought it down pretending to release the deadly arrows of a thousand archers with long bows creating a rain of death below.

"To your sword the Turds are scaling the wall!" Tori yelled and they shadow boxed the invisible soldiers with their invisible swords. Tori feigned taking a wound and fell to the ground as she dispatched her foe. Jade finished off her attacker and went to her friend's side. She propped Tori up so that she might hear her dying words.

"I am dying Jade. The wound is too deep. Take these men and lead them well. They are yours now. You are and always will be my dearest friend. I love you Jade." Then Tori closed her eyes and let her body go limp as if she had died.

Jade laid her body on the ground and stood and raised her sword arm and shouted, "In Tori's name to the walls!" Then she ran to the wall swinging her arm wildly until she could no longer raise it. Then she fell on the ground next to Tori and the two laughed for a long time. Neither had ever had so much fun in their entire life. They were more than friends they were like sisters.

This game filled a lot of their days in one variation or another. Jade always ended up leading the army to victory against the Turrids. It was while playing one of these games that they discovered a hole. The hole in the ground was bigger than a badger hole, but smaller than a den a wolf might use for her pups.

Tori cautiously threw rocks into the hole listening for any sound. No sound other than the rock hitting other stones reported back. Jade decided that the next time they came back she would bring a torch from the castle and a flint to light it. She wanted to explore this hole more.

On their way home Jade finally asked Tori, "Did Sammy really tell you about not sleeping on my bed?"

"Yes, didn't he tell you?" Tori asked surprised.

"Dogs can't talk Tori." Jade said firmly.

"Uh ya they can. All animals can talk just like humans. Can't you hear him calling you to come and help him get the ground hog he has chased down the hole?" Tori asked with a very confused look on her face.

"No he is just barking like all dogs do." Jade said thinking Tori was either playing a trick on her or using her big imagination again.

"I talk to all animals. Chickens are especially dumb so I don't talk to them. It helps when mom has one for supper, because I don't know them personally, but horses, cows, cats and dogs talk to me all day long. Is there something wrong with me?" Tori asked.

Her parents just thought that it was cute and something she would grow out of with time, but Tori didn't. She usually never said anything to anyone she didn't trust because they made fun of her, because animals didn't talk to them made them jealous.

Jade decided to let it go because she didn't want to anger her new friend. Deep down inside she wanted to believe that Tori could talk to animals, but she had never met anyone who could talk to animals before. It would take a lot of convincing for her that her friend had a talent she had never heard of.

The next day Tori made a major discovery. She arrived at the gate as usual, but the guard must have been called away for a few minutes. She decided that she would go find Jade herself. She really didn't have any idea where she was going as she had never been anywhere near the castle before. She wandered through the main arch and past the outer wall.

She found peasants doing many different jobs once she was inside the wall. There were women doing laundry and cooking a large pig over a pit. Men were washing and brushing horses and moving broken rocks to the areas where building was taking place. She discovered an entire other village inside the walls of the castle.

Tori asked an old woman who was feeding chickens where she might find her friend Jade. The old woman looked at her and laughed and pointed to an archway. Tori thanked her and continued to wander through the arch.

This arch lead through the keep and into the main buildings. There were servants rushing around cleaning this and that and moving dishes and such. She followed one such servant who was carrying at tray of wine, no so close as to be seen, just close enough not to lose her way. The wine had to be going to someone, maybe they would know where Jade was.

Tori watched as the servant placed the wine down on a small table and then exited the room. She then saw a man open a secret door in the wall and cross the hall and go through another secret door.

She followed him and used her little fingers to locate the edge in the wall. She then pushed on it and the wall opened. She crept into the room and found the man sitting on a large padded couch.

"Hello." Tori said meekly.

"Well hello there little lady." The man answered. "What is your name?"

"I am Victoria, but my friends call me Tori."

"How might I help you m'lady?"

"I am not a lady. I am a little girl. But one day I hope to be a great knight and help to save the kingdom for the King!"

"Is that so? You know that all the knights are presently men?"

"I know, but that will have to change. See once the King sees how good I am with a sword. He will want to make me a knight. I hear that he is a wonderful man who is very wise, but sometimes drinks too much wine."

"Is that so? How do you know that? Have you ever met him?"

"No. I am sure I will know him when I see him. He is seven feet tall and stronger than a field horse. He shines because his skin is the colour of gold. I told my friend that and she told me that it is not true. She told me that he drinks too much and that he often falls asleep at fancy meals. I told her that she was wrong and if the King ever found out she said that she would be thrown in the tower."

"Who is this friend of yours?"

"Her name is Jade. Her father works somewhere around here. He must be well liked because everyone we run into knows Jade. She is very nice, but she has a bit of a temper."

"If everyone likes her father then the temper must come from her mother!"

"I don't know, but that would make sense. Do you know my friend? We are supposed to be going out adventuring today, but she is nowhere to be found. You seem to know your way around here maybe you can help me find her. We would let you come with us to our secret hideout."

"I am kind of busy, but I can maybe find someone to go find her for you." The King reached over and shook a little bell that was sitting on the table next to his wine glass.

"It doesn't look like you are all that busy and you shouldn't be drinking wine when you are supposed to be working."

The King laughed as a small man suddenly appeared in the room. "This charming young lady is here for…. Jade is it?"

"Yes her name is Jade. Her father works somewhere around here, but I don't know where. She is about this tall and has beautiful long black hair down to here. She has the most incredible blue green eyes. I am sure someone must know her around here."

"Yes m'lady I shall find her." The servant said.

"I am sorry for getting you in trouble, but you shouldn't drink at work. I told you so."

The little man returned with Jade in tow. "M'lady Madam Jade." Then he disappeared again.

"Hi Jade. I got tired of waiting so I came in and looked for you, but this is a big place. I followed this guy..?" Tori said looking to her new friend.

"Call me Robert." He said.

"Robert here called a guy and he went to find you. I asked if he wanted to join us at the Keep, but he is buys."

Jade stiffened. This was more time than she ever spent in the same room as her father. She was afraid of him most of the time, but it would seem that Tori's charm had worked its magic on her father.

"Jade is it? Tori tells me that your father works here in the castle. She also tells me that you think the King drinks too much wine and falls asleep lots." The King smiled at his only daughter showing her that he would keep her secret.

"Ah yes sir… ah we should go now Tori." Jade said staring at the floor.

"Okay, well thanks for your help Robert. Maybe I will come back and visit you sometime. Have a great day. Don't work too hard." Tori laughed as she followed her friend Jade out of the room.

They walked in silence for a while and then Jade said, "Well that was a little strange." She kicked a stone on the road and watched it roll down the road.

"Why was that strange? Robert seemed like a very nice man." Tori asked Jade.

"Tori I have something to tell you. I have not been very truthful with you." Jade stared to cry and Tori went to her and hugged her to make her stop crying.

"Robert, the man you met in the castle, is my father."

"Well he seemed like a nice man. What is the big secret?"

"He doesn't call me Jade. Only you call me Jade. He calls me Jadelyn and everyone else calls me ….Princess Jadelyn" she mumbled the ending.

"I didn't quite hear you Jade. What does everyone else call you?"

She looked her friend in the eye and shyly said, "Princess Jadelyn."

"Why do they call you that?"

"They call me that because I am the Princess of Windborne. My father is the King my mother the Queen. The Keep we play in was built by my great, great, great, great whatever Grandfather. Please don't hate me."

"Why would I hate you? It is not your fault that you are a princess. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Everyone I ever played with in the past only played with me because I was the Princess and their parents told them they had to be my friend. You never asked. You just wanted to play and when we play you don't always let me win or lead the games because I am your Princess."

"No because you are just Jade. You are my friend. I won't treat you any different unless you ask me too." The two hugged and the tears turned to joy.

Jade took off the pack that she was wearing and showed Tori the torch and flint she brought to light up the cave that they found. This changed the mood and they were excited once again and ran the rest of the way to the Keep.

At the opening of the cave Jade took out the torch from her pack. It was a carved wooden handle with many layers of tightly wrapped cloth around one end. You could smell the oil that the cloth had been soaked in. She then took out a flat piece of rock called a flint.

She didn't know how to light the torch, but Tori just smiled and said, "I have seen my mother light the stove a million times. Let me do it."

Tori grabbed the torch and the flint from Jade. She lay the torch on a large rock and took a much smaller rock and struck the flint with it. Sparks showered down on the torch and after a couple of tries a large spark fell into the cloth on the torch. She blew on the spark and it grew. Soon the torch flashed and was on fire. Tori picked up the torch and passed it to Jade. Tori gathered up the flint and put it back in Jade's pack.

Now they had the light that they would need to explore the cave they found. They decided that Jade could go first as she was the one with the torch. The tunnel seemed to have actually been part of the Keep. The tunnel got much larger once they were inside. It was a bricked so it was a permanent structure at one time.

The light flickered off the walls of the tunnel as they moved slowly through the opening. They found an old rusted dagger on the floor. Tori picked it up and carried it ahead of her ready for anything that might come out of the darkness.

The tunnel opened into a large domed room that had two openings that led to it from the other side. They decided to take the tunnel to the left and follow it. There was a fair bit of rubble in the tunnel, but they were able to make it through. They pushed some of the rocks and rubble out of the way and found that the tunnel had brought them out at the bottom of the hill behind some larger rocks and some bushes. This must have been an escape route or a way to get supplies into the Keep.

They decided that they would explore the other tunnel the next day, because it was getting late. Tori hid the dagger in the bushes because there was no way her parents would let her keep it. They rushed down the path towards the castle telling stories about what could have gone on in the Keep and about adventures they could have.

The next day Jade was waiting for Tori at the gate. They ran up the path to the Keep and started back into the tunnel. Before they made it to the large chamber room they heard a small moaning sound. It was coming from the right tunnel that they were going to explore that day. Tori extended her dagger and slowly made her way down the tunnel.

"I don't think we should go in there Tori." Jade said rather worried.

"Jade I will keep you safe. I have my sword and you have a torch. It sounds like something is injured and needs our help." Tori said convinced of what she was saying.

"What if it is injured and doesn't want our help, but wants to hurt us instead." Jade said.

"You have to trust me Jade. If ever you have trusted anyone before then trust me know. I know that something needs me in there." Tori said with sad pleading eyes.

The two slowly moved towards the sound. It was getting louder and louder and became painful on the ears as they drew closer. The torch flickered and the light suddenly picked up the reflection of a pair of eyes. When the form came into view both girls froze in their tracks at the sight before them. Jade was wrong it didn't want to hurt them, it wanted to kill them.

**AN: ****A keep (from the Middle English ****_kype_****) is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility.****I hope you like this little story. It is going to be a little lighter fare than my previous stories, but there will still be friendship, pain, deceit, some violence and wonder. Please, please, please leave me some feedback so I know what you are thinking. Even if it is to tell me that you hate my stuff and wish I would quit polluting this site. SM.**


	3. Chapter 3: Losing Jade

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter3: Losing Jade

The girls couldn't believe their eyes. There was a small dragon. They were thought to be creatures of legend. Most thought that last dragons were killed hundreds of years ago, but this proved that they remained in certain areas.

This dragon was what was called a Mountain Brown Dragon. It was called this due to the fact that these dragons live in the mountain areas and are coloured the same as the rocks so as to be camouflaged.

They had large leathery wings which made them excellent flyers. Their bodies were covered with scales to armor them. Their heads were large block-like structures with two large horns that swept back from behind the eyes and multiple smaller horns around the jawline.

They defended themselves and attacked their foes with very long sharp claws and fangs. The older dragons could blow fire from their mouths and whip a tail that could bring down a castle wall.

They fed on any flesh living or dead. The larger ones were known to even carry off draft horses and now the two girls and the pup stood face to face with not one but two juveniles. To Jade they were terrifying, but to Tori they were the most beautiful creatures she had ever seen. The scales on their backs looked brown, but when you got up close they were actually transparent and the light made them iridescent.

Jade drew back in fear, but Tori inched ever closer to the dragons. She tried to hush the male dragon. He was howling in pain. His sister was being protective, but she was also very concerned. The female told Tori that they were wrestling in the tunnel and a huge rock fell on her brother's wing and she couldn't get it off. They didn't trust humans, but they needed help.

Her brother said it didn't feel like his wing was broken it was just that the rock was very heavy. Tori introduced herself and explained that Jade was a princess, but she could not talk to animals. Tori tried to pronounce their names, but they were a language she didn't know and she struggled. They told her she could call them anything she liked. She told the female that she would call her Tanis and she would call him Pathios.

Tori reached out and ran her hand over Pathios' tail letting him know that she would never cause him harm. He reacted to her touch guarded having never had a reason to trust a human before. Tori's hand was warm and calming. He soon calmed down and started to enjoy her touch. Tori then started to size up the rock. It was a very large rock, but she was a strong girl. Tori thought that she might be able to lift the rock off Pathios' wing.

Tori grabbed the rock in her outstretched arms. She used all her strength and could not move the rock. She could move it and raise it up a little, but not enough that he could pull his wing out from under it. "Jade you must get past your fear. We need your help. If we don't get this off his wing he will starve to death. He doesn't deserve that. He will not hurt you. You have my word. Would I ever let any harm come to you? No so please help me lift this rock."

Jade slowly walked one step at a time towards Pythios. Tori wrapped her arms around the rock again and she told Jade where to grab the rock too. On the count of three they lifted the rock. This time the rock was lifted about six inches off the ground. It was enough for Pythios to pull his wing free. Then the girls dropped the rock. Pythios jumped back and pulled in his wing.

When Pythios was clear from the rock he extended his wing and flapped it a couple of times. The wind from the wing blew the girl's hair back. Tori laughed at the experience. Pythios decided that his wing was in good shape and there would be no permanent injuries. He was very grateful. The lifting of the rock also lifted the guilt off of Tanis' scaled back. She reached out what would be an arm on a human gently ran a claw through Tori's hair. This was a huge act of trust on both their part and showed Tori just how thankful she was.

Jade was still shocked and slowly backed away. Soon she was back up against the wall in the shadows again. To her Tori was just making strange noises and saying that she was talking to these human eating beasts. She was no longer sure that she truly knew her friend anymore. She wanted to pick the torch up off the floor and run, but she didn't want to leave Tori behind.

"Tori …ah…. we should probably get going." Jade said from the safety of the shadows.

"Yes you are right. I hope to see you again soon." Tori said running her hand over the backs of her new friends.

When they made their way out of the tunnels Jade knew that something had changed in their relationship. She could not put her finger on what it was, but things were different now. She felt like she was losing Tori. There was a small piece of her that had changed and would never be the same.

Tori's parents needed help on the farm so she was not able to play with Jade. Days turned to weeks and Tori was sad that they would not be able to play and that she would not have a chance to try and find the dragons again.

Tori had time and decided to go the castle and see if Jade had time to play with her. Tori walked to the castle and was very excited by the time that she got there. She went right through the gate, because by this time most of the guards knew who she was and why she was there. As she walked through the archway she saw Jade.

Jade was not alone. She was with a group of girls about her age and a year or so older. Tori did not know these girls, but always liked to meet new people. She walked over to the group to introduce herself. She found out that all the girls were daughters of knights and nobles. The same kind of girls Jade had once said she did not like.

Tori asked Jade if she had time for her that day. "Jade I would like to go out on an adventure today and was wondering if you would like to come?"

"Me come with you? Why would I go anywhere with a peasant" Jade spit out with a snarl. The other girls all started to laugh.

"Jade! How cheeky you gutter rat. You will address her highness as Princess Jadelyn or Her Highness. You should have her flogged for such impudence." A younger girl said to Jade.

"Go away or I will have you thrown in the dungeon you mud grubber." One or the girls said to Tori.

Tori was very confused and very hurt as well. How could her very best friend be treating her this way? What did she do to make Jade suddenly hate her that much?

Tori started to cry and turned away so the other girls couldn't see face. That was when Jade did the most damage of all. "I don't even know who you are!"

"No matter what you say Jade I will always be your friend. I know the real you and this is not you. I will always be there when you need me Jade." Tori said as she ran away.

Tori was very sad she had for some reason lost her only friend. She spent the rest of the day sitting at the Keep trying to figure out what she had done to make Jade so mad at her. Why would Jade treat her so poorly?

Jade felt horrible for treating Tori the way she had, but Tori's abilities scared Jade. She had never known anyone who had strange abilities. Jade was afraid that if the other girls in the castle found out that she was friends with Tori that she would be teased and gossiped about.

A few days later Tori was selling eggs at the market and saw Jade and her new friends moving through the streets. Tori waved and called out to Jade, but Jade never even acknowledged her existence.

When they came near to her stall she shouted, "Jade! Errrr. Princess Jadelyn I have not seen you in a while. How are you?"

The smile soon faded from her face when Jade shot her a sneer and said, "Do I know you from somewhere?"

The other girls laughed and one of the girls came over and knocked the basket of eggs and three fell out and broke on the ground. Jade flinched knowing well that selling eggs was Tori's only way of bringing in money for food. These girls could never understand. Now Tori would have to tell her father that she broke three eggs because she would never tell him what happened.

That was when Jade came up with an idea that would let her save face with her "new friends" and still make Tori's life a little better. She reached in her purse and took out a full gold coin. She knew that this was more than Tori would normally earn in three months of selling eggs, but she also knew the effect would be greater on the other girls as well.

"If I give you this gold coin, will you finally leave me alone?" Jade said with a smirk.

Tori took the coin from her and Jade let her hand make contact with Tori's hand just a little longer than was necessary hoping she would be able to read something through this action. Tori didn't know if she should be grateful or hurt by what Jade had done. It was so confusing for her.

The last time that Tori tried to make contact with Jade was a little more successful to start with. Tori asked the guard at the gate if he would see if Princess Jadelyn would come and see her. He knew Tori and offered to take her inside were a servant would help her, but now she felt self-conscious about her clothes and her station in life. Never had she ever even given her life a second thought until it was pointed out by Jade and the other girls. She told the guard she would be out of place and maybe she would come down and meet her at the gate.

The guard understood how Tori felt. After a while Jade came down to the gate. She looked around and then quickly gave Tori a hug. This was just another mixed message that Tori did not understand.

"Look Tori, I am sorry about how I have been acting. It is just that…" She was cut off when she saw her new friends coming their way.

"…. I said if you don't leave me alone I will have you thrown in the tower for the rest of your life." Jade said this louder than she normally would have so that the others would be able to hear her.

Tori was looking for anything to make contact with Jade. "How is Samson?"

"My dog? You want to know how my dog is. Why don't you ask him yourself? You are the one that claims you can talk to animals. Not me!" Jade shouted realizing she crossed the line this time.

"You talk with animals you freak!" one of the girls questioned.

"What are you some kind of witch?" another asked.

"She is a witch!" another yelled.

"Go away now witch!" Jade shouted at Tori ignoring the absolute hurt in her eyes. Jade was felt like she just took a kick to the stomach, but there was nothing she could do now. You can't ever take back what you say.

Jade didn't want the girls to tease her so it seemed that having them tease Tori was a better way to go.

Not that they would dare taunt her in front of any adults, but adults are not always around and they would pick their moments. Normally Jade was not the kind of person that needed to fit in, but after all even though she was the Princess, she was still a child like all other children.

This peer pressure is timeless and very powerful. Everyone wants to fit in even if they say that they say they don't care. Sometimes it is even powerful enough to make us forsake our friends and families. That was the case in this situation and it hurt both girls.

Tori no longer went to the castle. She spent more time at home helping on the farm. Her parents knew that something had changed, but because they never knew about her friendship with the princess, they didn't know about Tori's loss.

After a few days Jade walked up to the Keep a few times, but Tori was not there and things were not the same. She stopped going out of the castle after that. The girls that she had turned her back on Tori for, soon became less interesting and Jade stopped hanging around with them. Now she was alone again like she was before she met Tori.

One day Tori's mother asked her if she was feeling well. They were not used to seeing their normally bubbly child depressed. They were worried more about her health as she wasn't eating or sleeping. Peasants that got sick did not get better and most likely would die. They needed Tori to help on the farm. They were already at a disadvantage of not having any boys. If Tori were to die they would have no one to help on the farm because Katrina was not much help.

Tori decided that maybe if she went to the Keep she would feel better. It was a beautiful day so she quickly got all her chores done and went to her favourite place in her world.

The Keep had not changed, but then it had not changed in a couple of hundred years. The feeling had changed. It was no longer a place that inspired her imagination. She sat on the low stone wall and stared out over the Kingdom and felt very small and very sad. Without Jade in her life it would be a terrible existence. How could Jade be so mean to her?

**AN: Thank you to all that are reading this story. Please leave me some feedback. It is the only way writers know how you feel about the stories. I ask you though if you are leaving feedback please make sure it is feedback, please don't try to lead my story though. I hate that! S.M.**


	4. Chapter 4: To The Sky

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 4: To The Sky

Day after day Tori sat on the wall staring out over the land. Every day she felt a little more alone in the world. She had no friends and she couldn't talk to her family about her feelings, she was just alone.

She felt them before she saw them. Someone was hiding behind the rock walls watching her. They wanted to make sure that she was alone and that she was not armed in any way. They had seen her come here several times and now was the moment they had been waiting for.

"Miss Tori? Why are you so sad?" a familiar voice called out to her.

Tori turned to see Pythios and Tanis standing behind her. She smiled at the sight of the familiar pair.

"I have lost my only friend. My friend Jade has left me for others." Tori said honestly.

"Why ever did she leave you? You are the kindest person we have ever known. All be it we don't know any other humans." Tanis laughed.

"She is the princess of the land and I am just a lowly serf. She realized that she couldn't be friends with someone like me. She has to be friends with other children who have noble birthrights." Tori said.

"Nobility is one of those qualities that humans don't understand. One cannot be born noble. You have to become noble. You have to live it, earn it. You can't call yourself noble. It is what others see in you. The selfless act you did to help me was noble." Pythios told her.

"I love this view." Tori said trying to change the subject.

The two dragons moved over and sat next to her by the wall. "It is beautiful. It always has been beautiful. You should see it from the sky." Tanis said.

"Maybe one day I will grow wings so I can see it from up there too." Tori smiled her irrepressible smile.

"One day when we are older and larger we could take you up to see it. We are still not strong enough, but we are growing and one day we will be able to carry a rider." Pythios said proudly.

"How old are you now?" Tori asked.

"We were born last year in the spring. So I guess we are about one and a half years old." Tanis said.

"Dragons live for a very long time though and humans do not. I may not live to see you full grown." Tori said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Yes we live a long time, but we grow very fast. We have to. If we don't, we would fall prey to other creatures and never reach adulthood. We have been flying for two months now and next year by this time should be big enough to carry someone as small as you Tori." Pythios spread his wings to show her how powerful he was becoming.

"We can't fly with you, but we could go for a nice walk in the meadow." Tanis said.

With that Tori hopped off the wall and the three started down the path that lead to the great meadow and away from the castle. The grass was high and the sun felt wonderful on her face and arms. As they walked every now and then one of them would stretch out a wing and touch Tori's hand. It was a simple act, but one with great meaning to both the one doing the touching and the one being touched.

This became the way that Tori filled her afternoons. She and the dragons would walk through the meadow exploring new things that they found and telling stories of ancient times and ancient battles. Tori asked about the days of the Dragon Riders and the destruction of North Ridge Castle in the time of the Burning Nights.

The two dragons told stories of their ancestors who carried riders into battle against evil lords and how so many had been killed by humans out of fear. Tori told them about what it was like to be human and fear everything that was bigger and more powerful than you.

They would lay by the stream in the sunshine and play hide and seek in the grass. Tori taught them how to swim, well more like how not to panic if you are in water. It was not the nature of fire dragons to be in water. They might have been the first ever to learn to swim.

At first they were happy enough just to stay in the water near the shore of the pool beneath the water fall. They could touch the bottom there and felt safe. Tori was a good swimmer and called them to come out with her. At first they wanted to copy her and use their arms to pull them through the water. It didn't work because their arms were far too small for their body weight.

Then Tori told them to float and use their tails to propel them through the water like a snake would. They failed a few times until they caught on and soon they were swimming in the middle of the pool just like Tori. After a few days of swimming one would think they were water dragons and not fire dragons.

It was on one of the days that they had been swimming and were now walking back to the Keep when someone far away was watching them. Jade was trying to see if Tori was at the Keep. Using her spyglass Jade watched as the girl and the two dragons walked through grass and talked. As they got closer to the Keep Jade put down her spyglass and closed her eyes.

Tears ran down Jade's face as she watched her only real friend make new friends. She didn't doubt that Tori could talk to animals. Tori was everything she ever said she was. She didn't have pretend and hide behind stupid games and titles. Jade knew she hurt Tori and hoped that one day Tori would be able to forgive her.

It was awful what she did to Tori. She was a horrible friend to her. If she could do it all over again, she would still do it the same if she was honest with herself. She was not as strong a person as Tori was. She was not as good a friend as Tori was. She looked one more time and saw Tori waving as the two dragons took to the sky. They truly were majestic beasts.

It was the most beautiful experience the first time Tori flew with her dragon friends. She became very comfortable sitting on their backs and learned to anticipate their moves and would lean in so that she would not fall off in a dive or when banking. They would fly further and further away and Tori saw parts of the Kingdom that no one had ever seen. She saw her village and farm from far up in the air. She even saw her father out in the field. He was as small as an ant from where she was.

She found that Tanis was easier for her to ride as her neck wasn't quite as thick as Pythios' so her slight frame could cling better. She could see where the dragon riders of old needed a saddle to stay seated during a battle. She started to fancy herself as a Dragon Rider.

Tori slid off Tanis' neck and gracefully landed her feet on the ground as Tanis settled. You would think that this fifteen year old girl was born on the back of a Mountain Dragon. She had grown into a beautiful young woman. Her parents wanted her to be married to one of the local boys, but she didn't want anything to do with him. She loved her freedom.

One day when they were out flying on the edge of the Kingdom Pythios asked if she wanted to see where the Wars of the Burning Nights were. Tori loved the stories of the great wars and wanted desperately to see where the most legendary battles in their land took place.

They had never flown to this area before. Tori was shocked when she saw the ruins of North Ridge Castle. These ruins were even worse than the ruins at the Keep. The stones were all scorched from the many dragons that took part in this war. Both armies employed Dragon Riders and many were killed in those dark days. This war was the reason that there was so few dragons left in the world. It was also the reason that there were no more Dragon Riders left alive.

They landed among the ruins and Tori slid to the ground. They walked around talking about the war and the stories that have been passed down. There were a few broken artifacts laying around. Anything that was still useable was gathered up by people years ago. Tanis started climbing the rocks on the cliff to look for caves.

Tori picked up a broken helmet that looked like the original owner might have had his head caved in by the major dent that was in the helmet. This war was brutal. It was said that there was no family in the Kingdom that didn't lose at least one person in the war. The losses on the side of the Turrids was even higher.

Pythios was telling a story about a great dragon named Meesa when a ground hog caught his eye. It was kind of disgusting, but Tori had got used to seeing this. Ground hog was his favorite food. He was quick on his feet and leapt on the rodent and in one move he hooked it with a claw and flipped it in the air and caught it in his mouth. It squealed just before Pythios crunched down on his bones. There was a moment of enjoyment on his face and then he picked up the story where he left off.

He told how even with a torn wing Meesa propelled his rider towards the top of the wall. Here they locked in combat with a hug bull Black Dragon. As the dragons took swipes with their claws at each other the riders thrust their lances at each other. The lances were made of an extremely hard wood and were ornately carved telling of battles the rider taken part in over the years.

As the story goes Meesa made a fatal mistake and the Black tore a large gaping wound in Meesa's chest. Her rider saw that his mount was not long for this world so with all his strength he thrust his lance and ran it completely through the armor of the Black's rider. Meesa fell to her death down the cliff carrying her rider with her. Meesa's rider although doomed managed to hang onto his lance and pull the other rider with him to the bottom of the cliff. The Black was last seen flying over the horizon.

The story tells that the Black's rider had been the prince heir to the throne of Turridica. The loss was taken very hard by his father the King of Turridica. He decided that the losses were far too great for his kingdom and removed his army from the fight. The death of Meesa and her Rider were not in vain they were the reason the Great War ended.

It is said that the body of the prince was returned to Turridica and Meesa and her Rider were taken to the top of North Ridge and buried. The lance was taken and used in the construction of the castle Jade lived in. The lance is in the wall over the throne to remind them of the sacrifices made to keep their kingdom safe.

Pythios asked if Tori wanted to try and find the grave. She was more than a little excited at the thought. This was a once in a lifetime chance. Tanis came and joined them and Tori climbed up on Tanis and the three flew to the top of the mountain.

From the bottom of the cliff the mountains looked jagged and rough and impossible to climb. Once they were on top of the ridge they could see the old path that was used to move the bodies to the top. It must have been and hard long journey. Then landed in the high meadow where the path ended. There was no wind here due to the high rock around the meadow. The grass was soft and green. The dragons landed and Tori slid off. This was a very reverent moment. No one had been here probably since the burial. It was not hard to find the spot. There was a large stone marker carved with the names Meesa and Darmune. An old rusted shield and helmet lay next to the marker. Tori was very moved by the items as these were worn by Darmune when he was killed.

Tori picked some of the wild flowers in the meadow and placed them on the grave to honour both the man and his friend. Only another Dragon Rider could understand the connection between the man and his beast. They were not two but one and most often died as one. Although Tori was not a real Dragon Rider she understood more than anyone else in her time could.

Jade had all but given up on ever being friends with Tori again. She had been raised and trained as the heir to the throne and one day would be Queen of Windborne. She was beautiful and was very skilled at dancing and other feminine arts. She had learned to host parties and how to act at fine dinners. She knew all the people of importance in the court and in the surrounding Kingdoms. Her days of leading invisible armies from the walls of the Keep were long behind her.

Jade was to be married to a prince. He was the son of King Eldon of Turridica. Prince Becket was a pretty young man. Not a handsome young man, but a pretty young man. If one saw him for the first time you would know that he had never done a day's work in his life. Although he was a student of history, he had never made any history himself. His father had lead his men in battle a number of times and suffered a few wounds. Becket's only wound came from tripping and falling while playing dress up with his cousin Susanna. The surgeon had to stitch his knee where he was cut. He received two stitches.

Jade had become a very accomplished horse rider. She loved to take her horse and race through the meadows surrounding the castle. Her hopes were always that she would happen to run into Tori and her dragons, but now that they could fly they never stayed in the meadows anymore. She hoped that when she was wed she could still go riding, however rumors had it that Beck was terrified of horses. The story told that he fell of a pony as a small boy and has been scared of them ever since. It was also said that he was often cruel to animals he met. She worried about her fiancé and his delicate ways.

Jade did not want to marry Becket, but her father insisted that it would finally end hundreds of years of war between the two Kingdoms by joining them as one. Their children will rule over the largest Kingdom known to history. She only hoped that her soon to be husband and children would rule fair and just as her father had.

If the truth be known Jade did not want to marry Beck, but this was her fate in life. This is what she has been raised to do. She was to marry well and provide heirs to the throne. Her wishes and dreams were left behind in childhood. She would sit on a throne in a palace and never see the expanse of her kingdom unlike her childhood friend who had already seen more than anyone else could ever see in a lifetime.

The wedding was set for the spring. There would be huge festivals and feasts. King Eldon had demanded that for the wedding the entire army be given time off to celebrate with everyone else. Only the palace guards would be needed. He agreed that he would do the same with his army as show of good faith. He would only be bringing about twenty guards with him.

King Robert saw this as very generous and agreeable in that they were not only wedding their children they were wedding their kingdoms. This was the two biggest historical enemies calling it quits so it made sense that the armies would not be needed and it was a great show of trust in each other.

Tori heard about the wedding, as everyone else did. She heard it from the town crier who went through the village yelling out the news. When she heard the news she was surprised, but she thought that Jade must bie in love with this man Becket. If that was the case she was going to be happy for Jade. She shed a tear for days gone by and for what they had become.

Word had got around that Tori was not willing to marry and that meant that the young men stopped asking. She would be destine to be alone and have no offspring. Her parents then spent their time focusing on finding a spouse for Katrina. Tori had to listen to her father's ranting over the subject, but he also knew that he raised her to be the person that she was. He encouraged her to be more of a boy than a girl and never to rely on others for your needs.

Tori was happy with the way her life was turning out and she hoped her old friend Jade was happy too with her life.

**AN: Thank you to all that are reading this story and thank you for the feedback. I am sorry if you are a Beck fan. No really I am sorry you are a fan of Beck! My readers know he is my least favourite character from Victorious. I am not even a fan of his acting. I always use my stories to beat on Beck. If you are a Jori fan you can't like Beck! Thanks again. S.M.**


	5. Chapter 5: Sticks and Stones

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 5: Stick and Stones

As the Royal Wedding grew closer more and more resources were taken from the people in order to supply the wedding. Food shortages were starting to hurt the villagers as well as firewood and lamp oil.

It was not at the request of King Robert, but at the order of King Eldon. It was decided that the wedding would be held at the winter castle in Esmil. He also decided that the armies should have two weeks off surrounding the wedding.

Tori was avoiding everything there was to do with the wedding other than supplying food. The more she heard about Prince Becket the more she did not like him and it made her feel so bad for her childhood friend Jade.

Tori found that the best way to forget about the wedding was to go for a ride with her friends Pythios and Tanis. They decided one day to fly down a river valley to see if they could catch some fish. The fish would be a nice treat for the dragons, but also for Tori to take home to her family.

The river was a long way from her home. She didn't even know if the river was in Windborne or Turridica. It might have even been the border. The river was deep and slow moving. The water was nice and cool. Pythios became very good at catching fish. He would slowly swim through the water and then grab them with his teeth. The fish that were not too tore up Tori would put in her bag to take home to her family. Any that were a bit chewed would be shared between Pythios and Tanis.

About the time Pythios was getting out of the water a log came floating down the river towards him. He grabbed the log with his mouth and tossed it up on the shore near Tori and Tanis. Tori tried to rip a small branch off the log and found that it was next to impossible. "This is very strong wood." Tori said.

"That is a branch from the Buxus tree. Very hard wood." Tanis said.

"I have never seen anything like it before." Tori said.

"That is because there was only one thing ever made from the Buxus tree and there hasn't been one made for two hundred years. It was used to make the Dragon Rider's lance." Tanis said with some reverence. "They were outlawed along with Dragon Riders when the Great Peace was signed with Turridica. We will never see that kind of glory every again I am afraid."

"Is it illegal to own the wood?" Tori asked.

"No you are just not allowed to make a lance out of it." Tanis said. "Would you like to take it back to the Keep?"

"Yes I think I would. Sort of a reminder of times long past." Tori said.

That day when they left Tanis carried Tori as usual and Pythios carried the Buxus branch tied to his back. He went on and on about how such a noble creature as himself should not be treated like a common donkey. They let him prattle on and on and finally they were back at the Keep and it didn't matter anymore.

Tori pulled the branch into the bushes and hid it in plain sight. If someone were to look over at the bushes the Buxus branch was just another branch in the mixture. She would decide later what she would do with the branch.

When Tori was making her way down the road on her way home when a very old man using a walking stick was coming towards her. He was dirty and ragged and had a patch over one eye. When he met Tori he did not look up he just pulled his patched cloak tighter around him and he muttered, "Meesa." He kept walking.

"What? Did you say Meesa?" Tori asked.

"What do you know of Meesa little girl?" the old man asked in a scratchy voice.

"I know it is a name and that it is also a word that is still passed from one to another." Tori said. "You said Meesa and I answer with 'Aut Ma Lexum' which is old dragon for …."

"Whoever taught you that, should have also taught you that it was to be kept quiet!" The old man glared at her through his one semi-good eye. He then pulled a knife out and held it to Tori's throat. "Why do you know the code?"

"Ah… I …ah …learned it from a friend." Tori said shaking.

"Who is this friend of yours?" the old man asked stressing the word friend.

"My friend Pythios told me while we were fl…. walking in the meadow." Tori said suddenly protecting her friend.

"Pythios? What kind of name for a human is Pythios?"

"He is not a human! He is a dragon!" Tori said before she could stop herself.

"A dragon. Do you speak dragon girl? Do you!" he shouted shaking Tori. He grabbed her and shook her. "How long have been able to speak dragon?"

"I don't know. You are scaring me. Lots of people speak with animals."

"You said speak with not talk to. Most people talk to animals. They don't carry on conversations with their dogs, you do don't you? And now you speak dragon. Show me your hands." The old man said grabbing for her hands.

Tori held out her hands and he brought them up to his good eye. Then he found what he was looking for on her left little finger. "There it is. There it is girl. You are she, my god you are the one."

"I need to get home. I am not to talk to strangers." Tori pulled away from him with surprising strength.

"You are the one. Don't you see that you are the one." He kept saying.

"You keep saying that! What do you mean! What one?" Tori asked getting very frustrated.

"You know the story of Meesa. What do you know about her rider?"

"I know that his name was Darmune. He was the best of the Dragon Riders. He was killed in the Great War." Tori said.

"Everyone knows that, but what do you know about the man?"

"He loved his dragon Meesa more than he loved himself. It is said that he had no heirs." Tori said.

"Well that is not true. He had a son and he had a son. Then there was a daughter and a son and then another daughter. It is said he had a mark on his hand that was triangular in shape. They say it was passed down through every generation. Does your father have this mark on his hand?"

"I ah don't know. Ya I guess he does. So does that make me the descendant of Darmune?" Tori asked.

"Yes you are. Does your father speak dragon?" the man asked.

"No my father is a … farmer." Tori said.

"You were going to say dull man. Are you stronger than a normal girl you age? Do you have extraordinary balance? Did the dragons find you or did they find you? Don't bother I know the answers. You are the last Dragon Rider! It was said that a Rider would come along when they are most needed. A Rider that spoke dragon just like Darmune did! Don't you see you are The Dragon Rider!" the old man said.

"I must go home I am very late and my family will worry." Tori said

"Can we talk again soon? Tomorrow, you can find me in the market. I am a wood carver." The old man shouted after her.

Tori hurried home because she was already late and knew that she was going to be in trouble at home. She had a thousand things running through her mind after talking to the old carver. Could she talk to her father about it? Would he know anything? Would he believe her? Should he believe her?

She was right. When she got home she was in big trouble. There was no way that she was going to ask her father about Dragon Riders. She just couldn't see him as a Rider, but then that is not what the legend said. It said the girl who could talk to dragons would be the last Rider. She had the mark on her hand and she had the ability and she certainly felt at home riding dragons.

The next day Tori got up early and got all her chores done and then found all kinds of extra work that needed to be done. She fixed a fence and picked some blueberries from the bushes by the creek. Her father loved blueberries and it would help smooth some things over from the day before.

She managed to slip away. She wasn't sure if she should go and see this old man or not. Tori finally decided she needed more information so she went to the market to look for this man. When she found his stall he was working on a small box. "I don't even know what to call you?" Tori said breaking the ice.

"Everyone just calls me Carver." He said.

"Tell me Carver how do you know so much about Dragon Riders? How do you know so much about me?" Tori cut right to the chase.

"Well I listen for one. If you are working people think that you aren't listening. Also who isn't going to trust a blind old man with a limp? My ancestors were Riders too, but none as famous as your relatives." Carver said while he continued to work on the lid of the little box.

"So why I am here?" Tori asked.

"You are here Miss Victoria or Tori as you like, to learn. The legend says that there is a war coming and you need to be ready. Right now you are nowhere close to ready. One of your problems is you have not one but two dragons. You can only have one. I would suggest the female. They are more protective of their Rider." Carver said as he started lightly sanding the lid.

"So you knew all this about me before you even gave me the code last night? You were testing me?" Tori said somewhat angry.

"Of course I was testing you. If I am right you have a great responsibility ahead of you and I had to know for sure." Carver said.

They talked for an hour and finally Tori started to believe what Carver was telling her. He told her that she had to be ready for battle and that she should stop just touring around on her dragon and start training. She asked him if he would train her. He told her that he would not train her. She and her dragon had to become one being and he couldn't do that for her.

"How can I be a Dragon Rider without the saddle and the weapons? The only weapon I have is an old rusted dagger I found when I was a child." Tori asked.

"I might know where we could have a saddle made. I have an old saddle at my cottage and I know a saddle maker that owes me a favour, but weapons I don't know if I can help you." Carver said scratching his head.

"You might be able to do more than you think. I have a branch from a Buxus tree." Tori said.

"Shhh keep it down. Girl we could both be put in the dungeon just for knowing about it. Where in hell did you find a branch from a Buxus tree?" Carver asked in very hushed tones.

"I found it in a river on the borderlands. I know it is what they made the Dragon Rider lances from. That is why it was made illegal to own. I could bring it to you and you could make me a lance." Tori was excited.

"I could but I would have to work on it only very late at night. It is very risky. If caught we are both on the block." Carver said making an axe chopping motion with his hand.

"I will sneak out and bring it here late tonight. Then you can make it into a lance so I can train with it. I know we must be secretive because I don't want to meet the executioner." Tori said.

That night when her family was asleep Tori snuck out of her house and up to the Keep. The branch was still there, no one had found the contraband piece of wood. It was larger, but surprisingly light to carry. This must have been why the Riders used this type of wood for their lances. It was stronger than armor and light weight.

She carried the branch through the shadows stopping every now and then to listen to see if there was anyone out in the darkness. At one point a dog barked in the distance so she quickly crouched against a wall until the barking stopped. She was then able to get the branch to Carver's shop.

Carver's place was a little different than a lot of the stalls at the market. His was a small house with a porch. He did his work on the porch were he could display and sell his products and he lived in the back. The branch was taken straight into the back of the little home.

Carver held the branch and examined it in silence. As a musician would hold a fine instrument, Carver held this piece of wood. To him this was like a religious relic. He had never held one in his hands and never thought that he would. His imagination could see the end product. After turning it over in his hands he quickly put it under his cot and covered it with a blanket.

Tori crept home and back into her parent's shack. She was undetected due to the fact that she was as light on her feet as a dancer and had an innate ability to move with the stealth of a thief. It wasn't until she was laying in her little bunk that all of her life suddenly made sense to her.

The reason she didn't fit in with other girls, her stealth abilities, her balance and sureness of foot could all be explained by her knew self-awareness. She was the last Dragon Rider. The reason she could speak with animals and had the sense of when they were ill or injured. It all made sense now.

Days later Tori was selling eggs when a man she that she had seen before but did not know came to her. He told Tori, he was called Grit. "Carver told me you were in need of a certain something." Grit said looking around and speaking in hushed tones. "I have come to own something that well might be considered illegal. I owe Carver for some furniture he made me that I can't pay for so he traded the debt for this item. He said I was to deliver it to you."

Grit set the sack that he was carrying down at her feet and walked away after looking around one more time. Tori watched him leave and then slowly opened the sack not knowing what to expect. She knew that if it had to do with Carver she shouldn't show it to the world, so she just looked in the bag. True to his word Carver had found her a dragon saddle and tack.

If someone didn't know they would think it was a strange pony saddle. If they looked closer they would find that it would have never fit on a pony with the strange shape of the saddle tree and the fact that the reins would have been far too long for a horse. She ran her hand over the very ornate saddle and smiled to herself.

Later she would find out that the saddle had been made in another village a long time ago as a tribute to a time gone past. Grit won the saddle in a card game a few years ago. Carver told him that the girl had a small pony and needed a saddle for it. Grit didn't know anything about horses and no need for a saddle so he gave it to Carver in trade.

Tanis was not excited about the saddle and bridle, but Tori told her about the war that was coming one day and that she would be very important to it. She told her that she would be as important as Meesa had been two hundred years before.

Once Tori fit the saddle properly and the bridle then they rose up into the air and both found that Tori was so much more secure on her back and Tanis could show her what she could really do in the air.

Tanis would fly very high and then go into a dive that without Tori sitting in the saddle with her feet in the stirrups she would have fallen to her death. Tori loved the speed and cornering. Her hair streaming out behind her as she flew faster than anyone had traveled in well over a century. She was starting to understand what it was like to be a Dragon Rider.

The two trained every day and both became far more tuned to each other. As Carver said they had become one being. By the time Tori thought about a move Tanis was already making the move. Tori took a stick with her to start practicing moving with a lance under her arm. She knew it wouldn't be the same as the Buxus lance, but it was a good way to train.

One day at the market a small boy came up to Tori with a piece of paper. It was a message from Carver. Very few people could read or write in their village so the note was a collection of pictures. The piece of paper had a wing, a branch and a moon. Those pictures told Tori that Caver was finished with the lance and he wanted to meet with her and Tanis that night.

Tori loved the lance. The balance was great and it fit well under her arm. Carver had really earned his name. The lance was decorated with scenes of dragons and battles. Even though the flight had to be short it was so wonderful to be in the air with the saddle and the lance.

It was fantastic to fly at night, but it was very dangerous. The dragons could see in the dark, but Tori's vision was limited as all humans are. When Tanis came in to land, Tori slipped her foot from the stirrup and slid from the saddle like she always did, but this time she caught a foot on the ground and tumbled.

She passed out and when she came to, Carver and Tanis were staring down on her. She tried to stand, but lost her balance and fell down again. After a few minutes Carver helped her up and she found she didn't have any broken bones, but she did have a hard time putting weight on her leg.

Tori spent the next few days hiding the fact that she hurt her leg. How would she ever explain to her father how she hurt her leg if he noticed? She worked through the pain and flew a little less until she was healed. She was a long way from the level Darmune, but she was becoming a Dragon Rider.

**S.M. Thank you all for reading my story. I am so glad that you are enjoying it. This was a bit of a slower chapter due to the fact that I had to set up a few things that are yet to come. I have had a few negative reviews but they were all left by "guests". I won't post these because they were just cowardly attacks and I don't respect people who won't face you with their name. I am fine if you have a negative review if you sign in and leave your name. Thanks again for your views. S.M.**


	6. Chapter 6: War on the Horizon

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 6: War on the Horizon

Tori and Tanis spent every minute they could together. They was no question now that they were one being. The times when they used the saddle there was no question that she had become a Dragon Rider.

One day about a month before the wedding Tori decided to fly out over the Borderlands. They were skipping through the clouds and the ground was a very long way to the ground. The trees looked like tiny green fuzz. All was going well and then on one barrel roll Tori spotted something. They turned so they could see what it was.

There was a large camp. There were tents, horses and soldiers in many rows. At first that did not seem strange to Tori until she remembered that there should not be any armies grouping up anywhere. There was to be a down grading of military due to the wedding.

So who was this army? Tori had to find out. She told Tanis that she wanted to land over the rise from the encampment. So they dove down where no one would see them and found a spot for Tanis to hide while Tori checked things out. Tori started to get very concerned about what this situation meant.

Tanis lay down in a grove of trees where she could be in the shade and near some water. Tori walked through the tall dry grass. The grass was taller than she was and hadn't seen rain for many months. She came across a couple of men walking down a path.

"Who goes there?" one of the soldiers said.

"I am a servant. I was out looking for water and got lost in this grass. I have never seen grass this tall." Tori said looking at the ground trying to become non-memorable.

"Ya well we don't have grass this tall at home." one of them said.

Tori was hoping that they would give away where they were from. That would have been quick and easy, Tori's life was never easy. She quickly walked to the camp acting like she was supposed to be there. She found a water bag and slung it over her shoulder and started making rounds through the soldiers giving them water.

She listened to the men as she worked her way through the masses. Every now and then she had to put up with a slap on the ass or a lewd comment, but she saw this as part of her mission.

They spoke with an accent that she had never heard before so she knew these were not King Richard's men. She picked up little bits of conversation here and there, but nothing that told her who they were.

She saw a larger tent with a small banner flying over it. This must have been the officer's tent. Tori moved slowly over to the tent. She walked around the back of the tent and crouched down behind and tried to listen. They were not talking loud enough for her to hear. She had to get inside the tent if she was going to hear anything.

Tori reached into her bag that she always wore slung over her shoulder and took out the knife her father had given her to protect herself against unwanted advances of men. She sunk the knife through the canvas of the tent and drew the blade downward. The material made a sound as it was sliced, but it didn't appear that anyone had heard the sound.

She slipped through the tear in the tent. It was dark and her eyes had to adjust. Her biggest fear was that she would pop through the tent and be at the feet of an officer. Lucky for her that was not the case. She seemed to be behind a large wardrobe. She couldn't believe that anyone would bring large furniture on a campaign, although she was happy they did.

Tori scrunched herself very small and listened. 'I will be so happy to make the move.' 'the bugs here are huge.' 'never enough food for the men.' 'kill the whelp too?' 'a disappointment to the crown', 'the bride a waste if you ask me' 'everyone dies' 'the old man has a big set I will agree with that' 'love to be the one to sink a knife in Prince Becky's heart' 'spend my winter on the Borderlands' 'when is the wedding?' 'best whiskey in the Kingdom' 'men to Eldon' 'to Eldon' 'Eldon'.

Tori had heard enough. She was putting it all together. That was when she bumped the wardrobe and a loud clunk drew everyone's attention. She dove out of the hole and ran down the path. She just needed to get to the tall grass and she would be away.

The officers were shouting and running behind her. She could out run these men easily and then she ran into a large soft wall. Tori fell to the ground and found herself laying on her back looking up at a very large hair soldier with a spear aimed at her throat. She knew he wouldn't stab her in the neck with the spear. They hang spies.

Tori was lifted to her feet and put in front of the officers she was spying on. "Who are you!" the officer with the most decorations on his tunic demanded.

"I am Katrina. I am a servant." Tori said using her sister's name.

"Why were you in the tent listening? Are you a spy Katrina? Who sent you?"

"I was cleaning when I heard you come in and I ducked down thinking I would wait until you left and then I would leave without disturbing you and ….he sent me to clean." Tori said picking a lower officer out in the crowd.

"Did you send her in to clean the tent?"

"No sir, she is a spy!" the low officer said.

"Who sent you spy?"

"Ah… I was ah … sent by…. His Majesty King Eldon… He wanted me to….ah make sure you ah… stuck to the plan." Tori improvised.

"Is that so? The King no longer thinks he can trust me? I don't think so. Orser what is her accent?"

"She is from Windborne sir." Orser said.

"No I am from South Hasperton." Tori tried with a shaky voice.

"See Orser here is our accent specialist and if he says you are from Windborne, then that is where you are from. That makes you an enemy spy who might or might not have heard too much. Now you will die. Hang her!"

"Fire! Fire!" someone in the distance was yelling.

The horizon was filled with black smoke. The large expanse of grass was on fire. The wind was blowing the flames into a fire storm. It was going to wipe out the camp. Men and horses were running and trampling tents and cooking fires and supplies. Tori took the distraction as her moment to make her get away. She would have to thank Tanis for the sneeze later.

By the time the officers noticed that their captured spy had escaped she was long gone into the woods on the other side of the encampment. She didn't know where she was running, she just knew she had to put space between her and the men who wanted her dead.

Tori was running through the woods checking behind her to see if anyone was chasing her when suddenly she was at the edge of a large cliff that fell a long way to the rocky creek below. She was on the edge and trying to regain her balance before her weight pushed her over the edge when she heard a sound. Her feet slipped and she was falling over the edge to her death.

Out of nowhere a large brown object came down the creek bed. Tori landed across the back of Tanis as she flew down the creek. When Tori figured out that she had landed on her mount she struggled into the saddle and took the reins. She duck down low against Tanis' neck and let her fly full out down the creek.

In almost no time at all Tanis had put several miles between the camp and Tori. Then they took to the sky and rose high enough that no one would see them from the ground. The next time they came down to the ground was in the meadow by the Keep.

Tori dismounted and thanked Tanis before she ran to the palace to tell King Robert of the plan that she discovered. When Tori reached the gate the guard there told her that the Royals had gone to Esmil Castle for the wedding. There was only a small number of guards at the castle because the army in on leave.

Tori had to get to Esmil in a hurry. She ran to the Keep and shouted in the wind for Tanis. Thanks to the incredible hearing of dragons Tanis heard her and came in a flash. Tori loaded into the saddle and pointed Tanis towards Esmil.

It took Tanis about an hour to get to the castle at Esmil. The time for stealth was long over. It was time to let the world know that The Last Dragon Rider's time was now. Tanis landed in a field outside of the walls of the castle.

The entire village of Esmil looked to the sky and were stunned at the sight of the dragon and girl dropping out of the sky. Tori slid to the ground and ran to the gate of the castle. As she passed a young man she turned and said. Make sure no one touches my 'horse'. Then she laughed and spoke to a guard telling him she needed to see King Robert right away.

"King Robert? I am to just let some peasants who shows up and says she needs to see the King waltz on through the gates? Who should I tell him is calling?" the guard said snidely.

"You tell Robert that The Dragon Rider is here to see him. I am sure he will send for me!" Tori said rather smugly.

"Well we will see." Tori said just as smugly.

It didn't take long and a servant returned and spoke to the guard in hushed tones. There was lots of eyes shifting back and forth towards Tori and soon the servant was guiding Tori to the King. The guard bowed his head slightly at Tori.

Before long Tori was kneeling in front of King Richard. "Your Highness, I have come from the borderlands where I had a small run in with an entire battalion of Turridian soldiers. I overheard them discussing an attack here at Esmil. They plan to attack and kill everyone including you and Princess Jade, using her childhood nickname."

"I have fallen for their tricks. I have doomed us all. Here we sit without an army." King Richard said.

"We do not have an army, but we have a Dragon Rider." Tori said. Tori explained everything to King Richard and how she would ride against the Turridian army.

"You may ride a dragon and be ready to fight my girl, but you are not yet a Dragon Rider!" King Richard proclaimed.

"But Sire I am ready!" Tori tried to defend herself.

"No you are not a Dragon Rider until you are proclaimed a Rider by your King. You cannot go into battle dressed in a pauper's rags. Someone fetch this girl a helmet, some boots and some clothes to wear!" The King said.

Once the items were brought and Tori was dressed she was called again before the King. She was told to take a knee before her king. She took an oath of loyalty and a very old oath of the Rider that had not been read in years. Then the king took a sword and touched her on the shoulders and proclaimed, "Arise Lady Victoria, Knight of the Realm and Dragon Rider of the Crown."

When Tori stood she did feel different and people looked at her differently. She was a Dragon Rider of the Crown. Princess Jadelyn came to Tori and hugged her. There was murmuring in the crowd, as no one hugged the Princess.

"I am so sorry that I turned my back on your all those years ago. I miss you Tori." Jade said.

"I have missed you too, my Princess. You must take your people and go. The wedding cannot take place. I am not sure that Prince Becket is in on his father's plot, but I know you are in a lot of danger. I must go now Your Highness." Tori bowed and took her leave.

The King's advisors started preparing the Royal family and others to leave and return to Windborne. A fast rider was sent to Windborne to assemble the army. They would be gone within the hour.

As Tori walked to the field to find Tanis a small crowd now followed and watched her to see if it was true. When they saw the full grown Mountain Dragon sleeping in the field and the girl walk up with no fear and mount the animal they drew back in fear but stayed put out of amazement. No one alive had ever seen the like of this before. It was the thing of legends only and now they were seeing it first-hand.

The Dragon Rider took to the air and swooped the village and castle as a show of strength. Most of the people of Windborne who were loading up their carriages and carts to leave looked up, including a dark haired girl with the eyes the colour of ice. When she saw the small girl riding the huge dragon she couldn't help but feel pride for her friend. Tori was always a soldier fighting for the Crown and now she was.

Tori drove Tanis to the borderland and started to fly the border from the south to the north. She was looking for encampments of soldiers from Turridica. She was now a knight and she would begin her campaign if she found the any of the declared enemy.

It was about an hour later that a small encampment that was on the move towards Windborne. Tori climbed high over the camp and then dove on the soldiers below. When they got to the bottom of the dive Tanis skimmed about fifty feet off the ground and when they got to the edge of the camp Tanis blew fire burning the soldiers and the camp. Tori used her lance to end the life of burning soldiers as they flew past.

Tanis made four passes over the camp. When they were done only a handful of men were alive. At one time Tori would have found this kind of sight sickening and would have never been a part of it, but knowing that these men were sent to kill Princess Jade was all the motivation she needed to destroy them.

She turned Tanis for home when the camp was a smoldering ruin. The men that survived would go back to the King and tell him about the Dragon Rider and maybe the fear of her would put an end to his plan to take Windborne. That was Tori's plan, but she was not going to count on it.

The flight home was uneventful. Tori could see clouds building on the horizon in front of her. She hoped the rain would hold off until they arrived. Right now the night was warm and if she hand not just ended the life of seventy or so men she would being enjoying the ride, even for Riders there was remorse after the battle.

After a long flight they landed in the meadow and in need of rest.

She had one task that she had to do before she could enjoy the much needed rest. She left her lance in the ring that held it on the saddle. She would walk for this journey. It wasn't far and she had made it a million times.

When she arrived at the door of the small shack that she grew up in she did something she had never done in her life. She knocked on the door. There was a light inside so she knew her parents were awake and sitting up waiting for her.

Her father came to the door with a lantern in his hand. He was shocked at what he saw in front of him. There was his daughter, but she was not the same girl who had left the house that morning. He could see it in her eyes. He knew the stories about the birthmark and for a time he could deny that she was the one, but deep down inside as she grew he knew but could not admit it to her or himself.

Tori came in and sat down at the rough board table. She tried to explain, but he told her that there was no need to explain. This was her destiny. She was not destine to work on the farm. She would not be getting married and bringing him grandchildren in his old age. She was The Rider.

She would do and see things that he would never see. She would live away from her family, because she no longer was their daughter. He knew she only had one creature to be true to now, her mount.

He had dreams when he was young about being a Dragon Rider like his ancestors and he told her so. He didn't want to be a farmer his whole life, but this was his fate, her fate was different.

Her mother was concerned for her safety, but Tori told her about flying on Tanis and how she finally felt alive. She told them how Tanis had saved her life already. Tori also told them that she knew she was a target for the King's enemies, but that was just the hand she had been dealt. She told them that if something happened to her it would be in service of her King and that was her calling.

As she was leaving her mother took a small doll that she had made for Tori when she was little. It was a bit aged and raggedy from the love of a child. Tori took the doll and tucked it in her shoulder bag. Her father hugged her and kissed her forehead and said, "Be safe Dragon Rider, be safe."

Tori tried to say something in return, but all she could do was nod. When she turned her back on the small shack somehow she knew she would not be returning ever again.

Tori's life had changed. She was no longer a farm girl. She was a Rider and a Rider never left their dragon. When Tanis slept in the meadow, so would Tori. That night she took the cape that was given to her by the King's servants and she used it as a blanket. A slight rain started in the night but Tori was comfortable sleeping next to Tanis' large scaled head under her leathery wing. The two stayed warm and dry. Even when Tanis was just breathing normally her breath was very warm. It was like having a roof and a fireplace and you didn't have to worry about security at night.

For Tori the war had begun, for the rest of the Kingdom it was just beginning.

**S.M. Thank you all for reading my story. I am so glad that you are enjoying it. Jori forever. S.M.**


	7. Chapter 7: Death From Above

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 7: Death From Above

King Eldon and Becket were furious when word got to them that the wedding was off. Becket had no idea that his father was actually plotting against him as well. King Eldon had set the trap and had the mice were inside, but before he could spring the trap they escaped.

When the surviving soldiers from the southern Borderland attack made it back to Turridica their story first sound like fantasy, but when all four men had the same story the King had to believe that Richard had a Dragon Rider.

It took over a week for the Royal family to make it back to the Windborne. There were small attacks along the way, but the guards easily took care of them. It was hard to say whether the attacks were sent from Eldon or just regular road bandits.

When they arrived back at the castle the army had been reassembled and were encamped around the castle and on the meadow. They were not practising. They were getting ready for war.

The armorers were preparing shields and armor. The smiths were building swords and spears. Food and water were being moved to the castle to get ready should there be a siege. Horses were prepared and war machines built. This was not going to be a short conflict.

Tanis and Tori were flying daily patrols up and down the border. They would report what they were seeing and every now and then engage the enemy. It never went well for the enemy.

King Eldon was not sitting back either. He had to adjust his plan. The wedding was off so the attack planned for that day was gone. He had created weapons to defend and attack Tori. He also captured three young dragons and chained them to rocks in the Borderlands. They abused the dragons so that they would attack any human that came near them.

Things were going well for the Turridicans they had taken a large amount of the southern lands away from the Windbornes. The Windborne losses were well over twenty percent. It was not looking good for King Richard's future as King or even alive.

One day on her patrol Tori found that King Eldon had created a number of new weapons to try to take her out of the fight. Tanis was skimming the ground with without any warning spears with ropes attacked started flying through the air fired from what amounted to small catapults. The spears flew over Tanis and draping the ropes over her. They then tried to pull her down with the ropes. Tori knew that if they got her on the ground the two of them would be mobbed and they would both be killed.

Tori pulled out a small sword and hacked away at the ropes. She had managed to free most of the ropes that she could reach. Suddenly a flood of pain hit her system and her eyes went black. She slumped forward in the saddle but still managed to hang on out of reflex. She called to Tanis that they had to get out of there and Tanis started to climb.

A couple of the ropes were caught on her spines on her back. Most of the men that were hanging onto the ropes let go, but there were two guys that were either were too stubborn or too stupid to let go. As Tanis climbed the clouds to the sky the two men clung to the ropes now for their lives.

Somewhere over the mountain range the men fell from the ropes. Tori clung to the saddle. Her vision came back to her and she could see that she had been struck by one of the spears. She had a large tear in her right arm where the edge had cut through her tunic. She was losing a lot of blood and would need a surgeon if she made it to the castle.

Tori was fading in and out, but still managed to hang on to Tanis. They dodged the campfires that were glowing on the ground where armies slept and waited for commands to attack. Finally Tanis could see the meadow and the torches that lined the outer wall of the castle. She aligned herself and glided in smoothly so as not to flap and possibly knock Tori off her back. Before she came to the ground she screamed a sound that was heart wrenching. It was loud enough to wake everyone in the castle and the village.

The guards looked to the meadow and she let out a small fire snort. Tori slowly slid off her friend and crumpled to the ground. A runner was sent out from the castle to see what the problem was. He returned shouting for someone to get the surgeon. "It's the Rider she is injured! Get the surgeon! Find the surgeon!"

Soon all the torches were lit in the castle and the large bowls on the wall were lit. Men ran out with a litter and gently picked up Tori and lowered her on the litter. Tanis let out a bit of a growl and looked the men over. She was just doing what she did naturally. She was protecting her Rider and would so to her death.

The men carried Tori to the castle where the surgeon would attend to her injury. She had lost a lot of blood and was starting to fail. The surgeon cleaned the wound and started to stitch her arm. She would need a lot of bed rest.

When she was stitched a very concerned Princess Jadelyn took over. She came in and started ordering servants to prepare a room. They scattered and lit the fireplace in an extra room and put fur blankets on the bed. They then carried Tori to the room and eased her into the bed.

A nurse was assigned to stay with Tori although Princess Jade would end up staying with her all night. At one point in the night Jade climbed on the bed next to Tori and held her in her arms. So many years had gone by, but it was like no time at all had gone by. In her arms they were ten years old again.

As kids Tori had pledged to protect her friend's life. It might have just been in pretend wars against pretend enemies at an old destroyed castle, but Tori took her pledge to heart and was now the protector of the empire. She might have been the biggest force in the Kingdom, but now she needed Jade to protect her.

As the light of day broke through the windows Tori shifted in the comfortable bed. Jade noted the movement and instantly checked her friend to see if was alright. Tori tried to focus when she opened her eyes, but it was difficult she was very weak. She slipped back into her darkness.

Princess Jadelyn was encouraged to leave Tori sleep and to go take care of her own needs. She would go bathe and dress while the nurses watched Tori. They were commanded to find her if Tori's condition changed. By the time her ladies in waiting were finished with her almost two hours had passed. Normally Jade loved this time and the treatment, but not today her best friend ever was fighting for her life and she wanted to be there for her.

Jade sat by her bedside holding her hand. There was so much she wanted to say to Tori. Tori lay in bed getting stronger for about a week. Late one night Tori's eyes slowly fought their way open. The first person she saw was Jade. "Where am I?"

"You are in the palace. You were cut really deep on your arm and your dragon brought you back to us. I have been with you the entire week." Jade said.

"A week? We are at war. I can't be out for a week." Tori said.

"It may even take you longer. You lost a lot of blood. Tori I was so worried that you wouldn't come back to me." Jade said quietly. "You saved my life by not letting me marry Beck. I am so indebted to you."

"I swore an oath M'Lady." Tori breathed.

"I was worried that you might….ah …. die and I wouldn't get to tell you how much I love you. We have been friends for so long and then I turned my back on you and ….. I love you." Jade managed finally.

"I love you to Jade." Tori struggled to say.

"No I mean I love you. Like a woman and man, but women aren't supposed to love other women. I know with my position there is no way we could ever be more than very good friends. I will do my duty and find a husband and maybe even in time come to love him and an heir to the throne, but I will always save my heart for you. You are my first love and will be my last love." Jade climbed on the bed and held Tori close to her.

Tori tried to open her eyes but failed, but she did manage to utter, "Love you too."

After about a week Tori was able to get up and move around. She was feeling better and the stiches were healing nicely. She could go out and spend time with Tanis. This made her dragon a lot happier. She had been very worried about Tori, but no could tell her that she was going to be alright.

Against Surgeon's orders Tori got dressed and climbed back in the saddle. Tanis knew to take it easy on her for the first few flights, but soon they were climbing and diving and training again. Soon she would leave again to get back in the war.

Men were fighting and dying on the Borderlands. She was needed and couldn't stay much longer. The day that Tori got ready to leave, Princess Jade came down to the field. Much to the horror of her guards and the ladies in waiting she walked directly to the dragon and raised her hand to stroke its massive head. Tanis remembered her scent and welcomed the greeting. She even nuzzled the Princess much like a horse might.

She and Tori said their goodbyes and Tori knelt before her making look like she was getting the blessing of the Princess to who were watching. Jade begged Tori not to go to the war. She couldn't bare if Tori were killed, but Tori told her that she had to go.

"Your destiny in life is to be the Princess and someday the Queen of this land. My destiny is to be the one who ensures that it is there for you to rule over. If you die every Windborner will suffer. If for some reason I die, I will have given my life for all. I have to go now my love and know that where ever I am I think of you." Tori rose and took her place on the back of Tanis and once Jade was safely out of the way they rose in the sky and headed out to make history.

It didn't take long for Tori to be tested. As they were leaving the fields around the castle Tori spotted a man riding a horse wearing the uniform of Turridica. Tanis came swooping down and scooped man and horse in her mouth. The man's leg was trapped by her teeth as they sunk into the screaming horse.

Tori yelled at the horseman, "Where are Eldon's troops?"

The man was in pain and screamed out, "No".

"If you tell me we will make your death quick!"

"Ahhhhh okay okay they are two miles off getting ready to storm the castle. We have over a thousand men. The siege will not take long." With that Tanis opened her mouth and dropped man and horse. As the man parted from his mount Tanis swooped down grabbed him again and devoured him. She marked the spot in her mind where the horse landed. She loved the taste of horses and would not let this one go to waste.

Tori turned Tanis back towards the castle to let the King know of the impending attack. This time she landed on right next to the castle wall much to the shock of the gate guards. She alerted them and they started running about getting others ready for the attack. Tori ran up the stairs to the throne room taking them two at a time.

She burst into the throne room and ran up the aisle. The palace guards were about to stop her when she fell on her knees before King Richard and gave her report. King Eldon had sent the bulk of his forces to take Windborne Castle. The entire court scattered in panic. Princess Jadelyn asked her father, "What should we do?"

"If I may Your Highness. Princess Jade take the women and children and run to the Keep. The large room is big enough to hold them all. Stone over the entrances and stay there until it is clear. I will come for you." Tori said as she turned to run back to Tanis.

When she got back to where she left Tanis she found that her mount was just settling down again but had a look on her face like the cat that ate the canary or should I say the dragon that ate the horse. "Where have you been? Like I need to ask." Tori stated.

"It was a very young horse Tori, I was back in time. Very tender." Tanis said laughing.

They climbed high in the sky so that they would be very hard to see from the ground. Tanis spotted the army with her incredible vision. She dived down towards the advancing line of men and horses. Just as she was going to make a fire run a sound alarmed her and she flared up again.

From the back of the lines a large Black Desert dragon took to the air with a scared rider clinging to his back, however the Black had Tanis in his sights.

Mountain dragons averaged between seventy and ninety feet long with the females often being larger than the males. Tanis was on the large side. She was over eighty feet long and had a wing span of six feet. She was armed with long sharp teeth and claws and many horns located on her head, back and tail. Tanis was a 'hot dragon' meaning that she could produce fire from the Capsicum gland in her throat. Other dragons called 'cold dragons' could produce a number of things including ice, water and in some cases acid.

The Black Desert Dragon is the largest of all the dragons. They can be over one hundred and ten feet long and have a wing span of one hundred feet. They too were a hot dragon but also had a tail that contained sharp horns on the tail that naturally contained bacteria that could cause infections and in the end kill over time.

By the time Tanis had made her move to evade the larger animal she was far too close. She slammed into the Black with her chest almost knocking Tori from the saddle. Tori swung her foot in the stirrup to keep her seat. The rider on the back of the Black appeared to be on a horse saddle.

The Black took a swipe at Tanis and she locked talons with him in the air. They tumbled through the air squealing and biting at each other. The armored scales on their necks stopped any real damage, but for the riders it was a challenge to stay seated.

Tori thrust her lance at the man on the Black. He managed to get a shield up just in time to protect himself. The move was completely a reflexive move rather than a defensive move. She drew back again but this time he was not so lucky. She hit him square in the visor bending it in over his eyes.

He could not see through the bent visor so he was forced to tear the helmet off his head and drop it to the ground. Tori could see blood running down his face from the blow. Soon it would be in his eyes blinding him from her attacks. Tori swung her lance and knocked him loose from his saddle.

She then pulled Tanis into a climb straight up and the Black followed. The last thing she saw of the man who was on the back of the Black he tumbled off and was heading towards the ground from about eight hundred feet. Now it was two on one.

Tanis had a small wound in her one wing where a talon must have gone through. It wasn't affecting her flying, but Tori was sure it still hurt. Tori knew that no matter how hard her lance was it wouldn't penetrate the other dragon's scales so she had to be creative if she was going to help drop this beast to the ground.

She saw the Black gaining position on Tanis and he was going to come from the side to grab her neck. Tori waited until he was about to make his move and then pulled on the reins with all her might and Tanis threw her head back and all he grabbed was air.

The Black was stronger, but Tanis had the advantage of maneuverability. It was now a chase as Tori took Tanis into a dive. Tori really had no plan she was looking for an opportunity instead. Carver told her that what made Darmune the best Rider was that he never put his dragon in a position where there was no escape route and he always used every opportunity available.

Tori turned Tanis and took her back up to well over a thousand feet in the air. When they turned at the bottom of the dive she could hear the solders below cheering on their dragon. Once the Black was beside her she pushed Tanis into the fastest dive that they had ever been in. The Black was hard on her tail. Tori could hear him growling and feel the heat of his fire balls he was throwing. Tori saw what she was looking for.

She eased Tanis to the left and aimed for the river. This was a river they had flown many times in training. Tori could fly this river in the dark and had on several occasions. She slowed Tanis down just a bit, letting the Black catch up. He was snapping at her tail with is huge jaws. Tori took one last look back and saw that the Black was focused completely on trying to get a hold of Tanis' tail. He never saw the move that Tori made.

At the last second Tori pulled Tanis up and she climbed over the cliff wall where the river made a ninety degree turn. The Black slammed into the cliff creating an earthquake and a rockslide. He tumbled to the riverbed and several tonnes of rock fell on him from above.

Tori stopped the climb and let Tanis glide to recover from the run. She looked down to see if the Black was dead or alive. At first she thought it was all over, but then she saw his leg move. She took Tanis down and landed next to the now very injured Black. Tori leapt from the back of her best friend and clutching her lance with both hands she drove it up and under the scales on the neck of the large creature and found soft flesh. The blood poured from the wound in his neck.

Tori withdrew the lance and impaled the beast again creating another fatal wound. The Black began to writhe trying to get at Tori in a last attempt to fight for his life. Tanis saw the move before he could strike and slammed a talon through his chest and directly into his heart. The Black opened his mouth in a silent scream and then all life left his body and eyes rolled back in his head.

Tori took out her sword and cut the talon off the little finger on the right hand of the beast they killed. That was a Dragon Rider tradition. It was done to honour the fallen dragon and the dragon she rode in battle. The talon would be made into a collar that fit around her dragon's neck. It would be a symbol to all of the victory and the loss of a great creature from the world.

She wrapped the bloody claw in a piece of cloth and tucked it in her shoulder bag. She mounted Tanis and started into the air again. That was when the arrows started to zing by them. She knew that the arrows would have no effect on Tanis, but if one hit her she would be in great danger.

She had to get above the arrows and get back to the castle. She and Tanis made it back to the meadow. Tori would patch Tanis up as best as she could. They would make a stand at the castle.

**S.M. Thank you all for reading my story. I am so glad that you are enjoying it. Jori forever. Grab your sword the enemy is at hand. S.M.**


	8. Chapter 8: One Shall Fall

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Chapter 8: One Shall Fall

Jade gathered up all women and children and took them to the safety of the underground room in the ruins of the Keep. A handful of guards were assigned to their protection.

The castle was secured and ready for a siege. This would not be a normal siege. This is what made King Richard a brilliant leader. He took three hundred soldiers and had them leave the castle and move to the forest just west of the castle. They would await the attack order from there.

Tori took Tanis and went further slightly north and east of the castle. The plan was in place and now they just had to wait for the Turridians to make their move. The enemy found the village empty. There was nothing to loot and no food to be found anywhere. They arranged themselves in ranks to make an impression when they approached the castle. They were hoping that the massive size of their force would intimidate King Richard into surrendering without a fight in order to save his people.

Once the Turridians were in place a fire was lit in a large caldron on the top of the wall. Green willow branches were placed over the fire when it was roaring. There was an instant column of white smoke that rose up into the sky. That was the signal for everyone to move.

The army that went to the west started moving in on the castle. This would close up the west side and the Turridians would have a two front battle on their hands.

When the signal was visible Tanis turned and closed up the east side. Tori would close up the east and create a three front battle. The river that was on the south side of the village now completed the trap and the Turridians were now in the middle of the trap without knowing it.

The Turridians called out for the surrender of the castle. They were stunned at the response that they got. They then started firing arrows over the wall and sieging the gate. They had a small portable ram that they were trying to batter the large wooden doors down when the ranks on the west side started to break.

From the small hill at the rear of the battle King Eldon and Prince Beckett were told that a substantial force was now attacking from the west. King Eldon knew that he was doing battle with a worthy opponent. "Good move Richard!" He said to no one.

His fighting force was now divided and he had lost at least a third of them to this attack on the west side of the field. Then he saw his greatest nightmare come true Tanis swooped down on the east side of the field. King Eldon had been told by his commanders that the Rider had been killed in the battle with the Black Dragon. The reports now seemed to be a little exaggerated.

Tanis was literally cooking the men on the east side of the battle. They used their shields to try and hold back the flames from this flying death dealer. Horses panicked and some bolted with or without their riders. Foot soldiers were simply turned to burning human flesh.

Tori showed no mercy. She was now fighting not for herself or even for her village. She was fighting for her princess. She would kill as many men as it would take to keep Jade safe. If need be she would fight them one after another on the ground. She took her vow very seriously and also personally.

There was a lot of bloodshed and men screaming. The archers on the wall were showering arrows down on the enemy. They used the height advantage as well. Large pots of hot oil were dumped on the men trying to mount ladders against the wall. Wheelbarrows of gravel were poured over the wall as well. The last indignity was the emptying of the week's sewage and kitchen waste. If the injuries didn't slow down the siege, sewage and garbage helped to take the fight out of the men.

The sides were collapsing. They were being pushed back into the middle and soon one thousand men had been reduced to six hundred. It was a much as a morale blow as it was a blow to their strength.

King Richard then ordered that the outer gate be opened. It was a brutal trap. The inner door was very secure so he had no worry that the enemy would breech it. When the men came charging into the opening between the walls they would find nothing but death awaiting them.

Richard had stone walls built years before that formed a straight entrance from the outer gate to the inner gate. On that wall were archers. The stone floor was covered with straw saturated with oil. Once about one hundred men were inside they would realize that they were in a trap and would try to turn around. The men behind them would not make that possible. They would create a human gate.

That would be when the archers on the walls would start firing flaming arrows down onto them. Sooner or later the floor would start to burn and the men would succumb to either arrows, smoke or fire. It was a beautiful plan and it worked like a charm. Within minutes over one hundred Turridian soldiers met their end.

King Eldon could see the trap being set and sprung he was shouting and waving at this generals to try to stop them from going through the outer gate, but it was far too late. All of the waving and shouting caught the attention of one Windborner.

Tori did not register who it was that was waving the flag on the hill nor did she care. She only saw a mounted enemy. She pull Tanis around and streaked over to the south. Some of the mounted knights saw her coming and fled, but two did not seem to see them coming as they were still watching the scene of death. Tanis lit the surrounding countryside on fire with her excitement. This was going to be like shooting fish in a barrel.

That is when the two lone men turned and saw the Dragon Rider closing in on them. One screamed and ran for cover while the other drew his sword and stood firm. This is what Tori was waiting for. She slid off of Tanis and told her to watch her back. She then went to one knee to ask the god of war to bless her sword and then she attacked.

Tori wielded her short sword like it was an extension of her arm. King Eldon was no push over. He had been a great warrior in his day, however his day was not going to be this one. Their swords clashed and the sound of steel would have rung throughout the field if there weren't about nine hundred men fighting to the death in front of them.

Tori used her size and speed to duck King Eldon's attacks. He still swung a sword with a force that could break every bone in your body. When he struck her sword or buckler the shudder would got right through her. She kept slashing and moving knowing that he couldn't keep up this brutal attack forever.

When Tori noticed that he was starting to slow down a little she took advantage of that and started circling him and making him move more. Soon his legs would start to burn and his armor would feel like it was made from lead. She hopped out of the way of smashing desperate blows. Eldon's sword hitting the ground each swing, showing her he was too tired to stop the swing.

A small group of knights tried to return to the hill to protect their king, but Tanis held them off with volleys of fire balls. Her 1200°F breath could cook you in your armor. They soon backed off and decided that King Eldon was on his own.

Tori kept moving until Eldon could no longer raise his sword. She then leveled her sword at his chest. He dropped to his knees and closed his eyes. "In the name of King Richard I take your life and your kingdom." Then Tori takes her sword in two hands and draws it back and in a single swing she lops off King Eldon's head.

At first she has to control the urge to vomit, but once under control she picks up his helmet with a crown on it as a prize for King Richard and then she picks up King Eldon's head by his hair and calls for Tanis.

She remounts Tanis and they fly up over the battle. She guides Tanis down in front of the King Eldon's knights and dropped the once head of their king. When the men realize what it is that is rolling on the ground in front of them, they stop fighting and many of them lay down their swords.

Some of Eldon's men kept fighting and they kept dying for a king that was no longer their king. That meant that Prince Becket was now King Becket. He watched as Tori took his father's head. He was in a rage. He started commanding the knights to gather and to march on the castle.

As he realized that there was no way he could take the castle he started looking for other ways to gain his revenge. He saw Tori glide down behind the castle to the meadow. She was going to the Keep to make sure all was well there.

Tori slid off of Tanis' neck and landed on the ground. She ran up the little path to the ruins. One of the guards brought Princess Jade out to see her. Little did either of them know that they had given up the hiding place to one of Becket's scouts. Tori climbed back on Tanis and climbed up above the castle. There was a pocket of men trapped in a hollow and she had to go save them.

When Tori returned she knew something was amiss at the Keep. The guards that were left there were now dead on the rocks. Tori swooped low to see what was going on. That was when she saw Becket with a blade to the beautiful Princess Jade's throat.

Tori knew she couldn't let her emotions get the better of her so she scanned the area and found he seemed to be alone. Tanis took a swoop around the back side of the Keep and that was when all hell rained down on them. Arrows were hitting them from the ground by soldiers hiding in the trees.

Although most of a dragon is impermeable to arrows due to the thick scales there are weak spots and if enough arrows are shot sooner or later one of those points will be hit. That was the case with Tanis. She took an arrow deep under what would be her right arm. She screamed in pain and for a moment the flight became very erratic. Tori clung to the back of the dragon while her lifelong human friend watched in horror.

Tanis was in a lot of pain. The arrow was working its way into her lung. That was when an attack of Eldon's rope spears came flying past Tori. Tanis was in no shape to fight the ropes. Tori tried in vain to cut away the ropes, but they were going to crash. From the height they were at Tori knew that both she and her dragon would meet their end. Two more arrows pierced Tanis and now she was falling from the sky.

Jade saw her friend and her dragon fall from the sky to their death behind the Keep. Jade screamed and Becket flinched. She fell to her knees in the dirt. She remembered all the good times she and Tori had playing at the Keep. It must still be here she thought as she reached into low bushes that grew up around the opening of the tunnel. Then her hand found it.

Becket reached down and grabbed her by the hair and started to pull her up from her knees. In one swift motion Jade slammed the old rusted dagger up under his ribs and into his heart. He looked down for a moment and was alive long enough to hear Jade say, "Die you bastard! She was the best of us!"

At the sight of Becket dying his soldiers charged the Keep ready to kill Jade. That was when everyone heard the anguished cry of a dragon. The soldiers froze in their tracks and their eyes were as large as coins. Jade had a feeling that it wasn't her standing there with a rusted old dagger that stopped the advancing army. She looked over her shoulder and up over the top of the Keep and saw something she did not expect.

The soldiers saw a much bigger dragon with the Rider on its back. When Tori fell from the sky Phythios heard his sister's scream and came at full speed. He plucked her off his sister before they hit the ground. Now they faced a full grown angry Mountain Dragon.

Phythios roared in his anger and blew a large stream of fire straight into the oncoming soldiers. Twenty-five soldiers met their end by the fiery breath of a dragon. Phythios turned and blew down on ten more soldiers. The rest of the soldiers dropped their weapons and ran. The war was over.

There would be a long rebuilding in both kingdoms. With the Eldon and Becket dead to the victor goes the spoils. The kingdoms and Windborne and Turridica were joined after six hundred years. They were unified under the new Kingdom of Algencourt. The war was truly over.

**S.M. Thank you all for reading my story. I am so glad that you are enjoying it. Jori forever. There will be an epilogue. S.M.**


	9. Epilogue

**AN: I don't own Victorious or any of the characters. I just keep them alive through my stories. I make no money from my use of these Characters. **

Epilogue

"Richard, Victoria? Come now." Queen Jadelyn called to her two beautiful children.

The three walked through the meadow to the base of the large hill that rose up behind the Windborne Castle. When they got to the large cement monument they stopped. "Mommy what does it say?" Richard asked.

"It says, Tanis lays here. She gave herself for all of us. This dragon died so that we might live." Jade wiped away a tear that was rolling down her face.

"Did you know here mommy?" Victoria asked hugging her mother.

"Yes honey I knew her. My friend The Dragon Rider rode her in the Last Great War. I knew her well." Jade said through her tears.

Jade placed the flowers against the monument. It seemed like a good idea when she cut them in the garden, but now it seems like such an insignificant thing to be doing at the grave of one who did so much for you.

The last eight years seemed to fly by, but in reality there had been a lot of things that have happened. After the war was over the two kingdoms were joined into one large kingdom, Algencourt. Jade met a young man and fell in love with him. They were married and moved to the old Castle of Turridica. They named the castle Tharfield.

Not long after her marriage, King Richard took ill and died. A month later she was named Queen of Algencourt and all its lands. Soon after Tori and Pythios decided to leave and go to live in the outer lands. They would return to visit once and a while like at the birth of her son and then again two years later for the birth of her namesake.

Jade knew that Tori was never far. She knew if she was needed for the protection of the realm she would be there. Tori was still watching. Every now and then she left evidence of this on the monument of her friend Tanis. When Jade would take her walk she would see a small gift like a bone or a coin left on the monument's base.

Queen Jade rose to her feet and dried her tears and took her daughter's hand and walked back toward the castle. "Mommy I am named after Grandpa Richard right!" Richard asked.

"Yes Richard you are named after Grandpa Richard." Jade answered. This was a game that Richard always liked to play.

"He was your father right?"

"Yes, he was my father."

"He was the King wasn't he?"

"Yes he was the King, Richard."

"See Victoria I am important." Richard stuck his tongue out at her and ran off ahead.

"Don't listen to him Victoria. You are named after someone important too." Jade said to her angelic little girl.

"I am named after The Dragon Rider aren't I Mommy?"

"Yes you are my love."

"She is your best friend for life isn't she Mommy?"

"Yes and longer."

"Tell me more about her Mommy."

"Well she was born to a peasant family and lived in the village down there. We played in the ruins of the Keep when were a little older than you. She made a promise to protect your mommy for ever. She is smart and strong. She could ride a dragon and fight like a knight. She was more beautiful than a sunrise and …..she walked with dragons.

The End

**AN: Thank you everyone for your thoughts and reviews for this story. Maybe you would like some of my other pieces if you haven't read them. S.M.**


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